Old Koreelah

Sad but true, Nev. I built our house right next to a group of White Box trees, so that they shaded the house on blistering summer arvos- like the one we’re having now. I was prepared to regularly clean their leaves from my gutter, but falling branches are an existential threat, so have removed the closest ones. Why do big branches break off? A few come down during big windstorms, but others fall without warning on clear, still days. I’ve found white ant damage on a couple. Never park or camp under a big eucalypt.

It’s natural to admire an attractive female, but taking it too far might indicate an underlying problem… Not too many years ago I frequented a toppies bar and could have a conversation with the nice young barmaids while maintaing eye contact.

Red that’s an amazing feat! How easy would it be to slip all those profiles into an easily-searched database?

Well done Jerry! You’re still a young bloke with heaps of time to reinvent yourself. Old farts like me are desperately trying to be a slightly better version of the sad bugger I already am. Next year I hope to actually complete a project or two.

I’d like to participate, but will wait till the pictures don’t include such repulsive people.

Reminds me of Enemy at the Gates, that great movie about the Seige of Stalingrad. Thousands of conscripts are brought in to this meat grinder, often at gunpoint. When Khrushchev takes over, it’s obvious the use of brutality to motivate Soviet defenders is not working. One brave young official suggests the troops need to be given hope. He puts forward a young sniper as a hero figure. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasily_Zaitsev_(sniper)

Even conservative politicians have said he’s the bestman for the job. He commands far more respect in America than here; his depth of experience and command of Chinese has allowed him to, on occasions, warn of political event in China ahead of even the vast US intelligence network.

Which also explains why N Korea and Iran are going all-out to build up a nuclear deterrent. They saw what the West did to Libya and Iraq.

I wonder how that Australian timber performed.

Tall wooden sailing ships needed quite a bit of ballast. Early convict ships carried cut stone from England, ready to be used in public buildings. Some of Newcastle’s breakwater is madeof rubble from the San Francisco earthquake.

So, OME, the blowies are out to get you!

…which prompts the question: how many lawyers has he used up during his career? We know some have been disbarred because of the porkies they told on his behalf. He’s famous for not paying his bills, so how does he find legal representatives?

I have fond memories of the Waggas our mum sewed for us during the drought years of the 60s. They kept her young brood warm throught several cold winters, but mysteriously disappeared when things improved. Perhaps the only time this thrifty woman tossed out anything useful; she was utterly ashamed to be poor.

Whoopie!! Albo’s government is cleaning up another fetid backwater of corruption! https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-12-16/administrative-appeals-tribunal-abolished-by-attorney-general/101781300

Giving kids brand-new bikes may be the problem. They get flogged for a few months then discarded. Like many of us old farts on here, they’d derive greater benefit if they’d had to buy well-used bikes with money they’d earned. Instead of spending their waking hours torturing the retired couples next door, they’d be learning to the repair and maintain the bloody things!

Regarding politicians peppering their responses with “err and ahh”: Kevin Rudd impressed me with his clear, certain speaking style while in opposition but once in the hot seat became much more careful and hesitant, as would most of us. Albo was pretty much the opposite- champion of “err and ahh” during the campaign. Didn’t impress me, but once elected he sounds much more confidant.

I’d suggest being brought up with extreme religion and their exposure to American-sourced “the guvmint is coming to get you” crap is to blame. Australians (including our governments) import too much of the worst that the USA has to offer. Totally agree, Yenn. That’s what we did. Bought a cheap, eroded block to rehabilitate. Installed septic and own own water supply for the price of a new car. Built our own home based on the sustainability trends of the 80’s. Don’t agree about the noisy motorbikes; there are now lots more blocks near us and the first thing the new owners do, even before building a house, is buy their kids lots of noisy dirty bikes…

I presume you blokes are talking about a fighter jet movie that lots of us will never watch, because it has that spoiled brat/nutjob in it.

Poor bluddy Balinese: kind, good-living Hindus being colonised and gradually squeezed by their Islamic neighbours.

An encouraging story my wife found on FB; she’s a keen bowler and our club only has a few pokies, hidden away. Some clubs we’ve been to are depressing places, probably because their glitzy upgrades are paid for by poor gambling addicts. The Petersham Bowlo has found a way to cast off the tentacles of this evil industry:

Not just the dates…

Not so long ago Indonesia had a growing generation of young kids and desperately needed investment in it’s schools. John Howard and Gearge W Bush were cutting back on foreign aid and thought spending up large on American weapons was a better investment. So who stepped in to fund the schooling of these young kids? Saudi Arabia built lots of Madrasas, which have done a great job of replacing Indonesia’s mild, tolerant version of Islam with their austere, hate-filled Wahhabism- which brought us Bin Laden and his mass murderers. For a small investment to assiste Indonesia’s struggling public schools, Australia could have avoided the radicalisation of the Bali Bombers.

Too plurry right they would, as do people in many countries. A family member recently spent a fortnight training people there. They’d all done the hard yards, like millions of people who struggle to get a basic grasp of our hard-to-learn language. We are spoiled to have been born in a land that speaks the world language.

Too late! Most Republican politicians have already demonstrate how utterly unfit they are for office: